Wednesday, April 29, 2009

I'll admit, I had high expectations for this place. I am among other things, a connoisseur of burgers, so the concept of a GIANT HAMBURGER had me envisioning all sorts of things. I was let down.

I got the bacon cheeseburger, with a fried egg on it, and fries. It came out to $8.45. The burger and fries came in baskets diner style. When I got it the first thing I noticed was that the burger itself was not really giant. The place should be more called, Georges Mediocre Hamburgers, because it was, well, just sorta average. Not Giant, not small, just a medium sized average hamburger with a below average side of fries.

As you might be able to see, the bacon was stiff and brittle like my 95-year-old grandmother's wrists and hips, because when I arranged it on the burger it crumpled into little pieces. Party foul. The bun was nice and soft and toasted, and it looked like they buttered it, so that was a plus., but the fries were sort of bland and had a mild hint of egg taste (they must fry them in the same oil).

It's kinda neat because they have a toppings bar where you can put your own toppings on the burger, but by and large I was just not satisfied. It wasn't a bad burger, or a good one, it was just an average burger with an above average burger joint name. Thusly, overall I'd give Georges a 2.5 out of 5.

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ORIGINAL POST 12.18.08

The Duke of Hamburg (also know as The Guilty Carnivore ) makes us hungry visually and takes condiments personally:

George’s Giant Hamburgers is located in Tigard, just off the 99W as it transforms from Barbur Blvd. and leaves Portland proper.

As you can see, the windows boasts that they grind meat fresh. Daily. Except Sundays, when they are closed. So they are liars.

There’s a well-stocked garnish bar, with sauces that include a special-saucey 1000 Island-type concoction that for all I know is actually 1000 Island dressing. I don’t eat things named after mystical places.

The garnish bar includes a salsa fresca, jalapenos, and two types of pickles, even. Well, three, if you include relish as a type of pickle, and I don’t, but I’m not gonna fight you on this.

The bun at George’s is always toasted.

The fries are thicker cut, and fairly decent, though could be a bit crisper. Some people get all freaky about fries and shit and will only eat one style, but I personally like freshly cut and fried potatoes with the skin on.

A fully dressed hamburger. Verdict? The meat isn’t all that flavorful, but it tastes like beef. It’s an honest, simple burger, albeit overcooked to well-done. The pre-cooked weight of the standard burger is 1/3 of a pound. The bun is nicely toasted. At $4.45, it’s only a little over a dollar more than the Whopper™ Sandwich you’ll find just a couple hundred yards down the street, and much better since it’s not microwaved and sitting upon a bottom bun the consistency of refrigerated day-old gravy.

And as you can witness by the three fresh pickle spears, I enjoy over-accessorizing my burger. The quality and selection of the garnish bar makes George’s an infinitely better value than typical fast-food fare. Thick slices of red onion, freshly chopped lettuce, and uniform, meaty slices of tomato…as a comparison, nearly half the time I’ve had a burger at Burgerville the sole tomato slice was simply the very crown of the fruit with a hole in the middle. You won’t find this at George’s, because you’re master of your own burger domain.